We talk about recovery often, but how many of us actually make a conscious decision to recover or have the time to recover? Now that the Open has ended, many of us can get back to a nice normal routine. We all have extremely busy lives and just making it in for an hour a few times a week is sometimes difficult let alone allocating more time to recovering properly. We work out so hard most days and wake up sore the next. On days we wake up sore we are faced with two options; work out or take a rest day. There is a third option, consider an active recovery day. Active rest can be something as simple as playing basketball or tennis or taking extra time with a foam roller.

We tend to base our workout success on how sore we are, but what good is being so sore that it prevents us from working out for a few days? Our bodies improve and adapt on the days we recover, so scheduling recovery time is vital to optimizing our performances. The simple equation is work + rest = success.

The quicker you recover the sooner you can get back to high intensity workouts which leads to better gains and faster improvements. In other words recovery is the key element to reaching or not reaching your goals.

Recovery is also important from a mental standpoint. Even the most well conditioned athletes will burn out if they push the limits with their workouts and don’t make a conscious effort to rest and recover. Scheduling active rest days during the week allows you to really push yourself during your workouts knowing you’ll be giving your body and mind time to recover. Make a conscious effort to take recovery days and during those recovery days find different way to actively recover. I mean we work our tails off inside of the gym so we can enjoy ourselves outside of the gym, right?

So how do we put this in play? Plan ahead. You know what a typical week looks like for you and when you’ll be training. You’ll also have an idea as to when you’ll need a recovery day so plan accordingly. Ask your trainers for different active recovery drills or invite a member to go play hoops or tennis. Might as well take advantage of the great weather and get outside while we still can.

A quick scheduling note, we are going to have two classes before the Level 1 on Saturday April 11th. The classes are in MBO. They are early, but we’ve heard requests for early classes so here you go.

Well the 2015 Open is finished. I for one am happy that it is. What did you guys think? There are a few things about the Open that are great.

A few observations from the past 5 weeks of the Open.

The Open brings out the best of CrossFit. Everyone cheering each other on, staying after their class has ended to show encouragement to others as they power through the workouts. The Saturday and Sunday re-do’s generated a ton of energy even if there weren’t as many people as a traditional class.

With this years scaled option it made sure that everyone could participate and post scores. In the past years there was only one workout, but with the scaled option this year, it presented everyone the opportunity to participate and post scores.

The leaderboard. I don’t know how much traffic the Games website receives but it clearly receives a bump in volume this time of year.

The Thursday announcement, for a few reasons. I love seeing the elite take on a workout, then giving it a go ourselves to really understand how good the top athletes are. I also the actual show on Thursday evening. Gathering around the TV to watch the announcement and then see people start to strategist is always entertaining.

The workouts. Some of them are innocent looking enough but once you finish them you understand why they are the Open workouts. Rowing and Thrusters, sounds easy enough but boy was it anything but.

Well 2015 is over. Now we wait and see how the leaderboard shakes out and look forward to next year and do it all over again.

If you found anything interesting or have any insights you’d like to share, post to comments.

Congrats to TEAM TWO TALL TWO SHORT! They competed in the Mighty Rhino on Saturday @ CF Unbroken!

SMILE

Normally, the Sunday blog post contains a delicious Zone or Paleo recipe, but I can’t contain my excitement for the following information.

When I take Paige for walks, I do my darndest to not listen to the random thoughts and conversations that pop into my head. I choose to fill this inner dialogue with a Podcast. I have a variety that I listen to: Serial (thank you Lev), Freakanomics Radio, The Tim Ferris Show, RadioLab, and TED Radio Hour. That last podcast, TED Radio hour, recently did a podcast titled “Success”. In this podcast, they reference a TED Talk from 2011 given by Ron Gutman called The Hidden Power of Smiling. I found this podcast so impactful because it gave scientific backing to a few of the principles I try to live by. I would love to share these with you.

Please take 7 minutes to watch this video and see the true power of smiling, not only for yourself, but for everyone around you (cheesy, I know). Let us know in the comments what your GO-TO podcasts are for information and motivation!

VERVE UPDATE

-Since Self-Defense class has ended, you can show up much earlier to warm-up. Heats will begin @ 1pm and go until needed!

Verve is hosting a Level 1 Seminar the weekend of April 11th-12th. Verve will have a 7am WOD and some offsite WODs for those looking to sleep in. Verve will be closed the rest of the day Saturday and Sunday. Interested in signing up for the course, go to Verve’s Events Page for more details.

Saturday April 11th-

Collabeeration 5K and brew fest in Longmont, CO. For more details and to get signed up, click here.

CrossFit Football Trainer Course, July 11th-12th-

This course is an introduction to the concepts, movements and level of intensity needed to be successful in training for sport. In the course, participants are provided with a foundation for training athletes. They are taught the fundamentals of sport-specific training, including sprinting, basic movements, warm-ups and cool downs, change-of-direction and agility drills, jumping and weightlifting. Participants are given information on programming, nutrition and diet, and film study. Film study demonstrates the practical application of the CrossFit movements to football and other power sports. Anyone who trains groups that are required to be strong, agile and powerful can benefit from this course, no matter the level of athletes. Click here to register.

CrossFit Weightlifting Trainer Course, August 29th-30th-

Two days are spent detailing each lift (snatch on Day 1, clean and jerk on Day 2). The focus is on participants experiencing the basic positions and learning the foundational teaching points for instructing others to achieve them. The snatch and clean and jerk bring speed, power, coordination, agility, accuracy and balance to training and are indispensable to CrossFit programming and developing a well-rounded athlete. Click here to register.

NotesThis workout begins seated on the rower with the monitor set to zero calories. At the call of “3-2-1 … go,” the athlete will grab the handle and begin rowing. Once you have rowed 27 calories you will move to the barbell for 27 thrusters, then back to the rower for the round of 21, and so forth. Each time you return to the rower you or your judge must reset the monitor to zero before rowing.

Every second counts in this workout. Your score will be the time it takes to complete all 144 repetitions. There is no time cap for this workout.

This workout ends when the final rep of the thruster is locked out overhead. Time will be recorded in full seconds. Do not round up. If you finish in 9:25.7, your score is 9:25.

Equipment• An indoor rower with a monitor that measures calories• Barbell• Collars• Plates to load to the appropriate weight for your division

For each workout, be sure the athlete has adequate space to safely complete the event. Clear the area of all extra equipment, people or other obstructions.

Video Submission StandardsPrior to starting, film the plates and barbell to be used so the loads can be seen clearly. All video submissions should be uncut and unedited in order to accurately display the performance. A second person with a stopwatch should be in the frame throughout the entire workout. Shoot the video from an angle so all exercises can be clearly seen meeting the movement standards.

*We want to celebrate the end of the Open. We will be meeting at Jake’s Saturday afternoon @ 3:30pm, following the 15.5 re-do. We want to toast the completion of the 2015 CrossFit Games Open and all the PRs that came with it. Please join us for drinks and raffle prizes. Verve will be putting up $250 at the bar for first come, first serve drinks. We have the whole patio reserved. . . the dog friendly patio!!

Sometimes you just gotta do some curls for the girls. . . isn’t that right Stan?

You can wish in one hand and s#@t in the other, see which one fills firstBy Courtney “yeah, I just said that” Shepherd, with the assistance of Patrick McCarty and Breaking Muscle

If you have never heard that saying before then I apologize for startling you with such brash words so early in the morning (or late at night if you preview the blog before bedtime). I remember the first time I heard that statement, I laughed so hard because it really is such a bold and cruel way to say that wishing for something to happen will not make something happen. Plus whenever I hear that phrase, doesn’t matter who says it, in my head it’s coming from the mouth of a crusty, 80 year old man who’s seen it all, full of wisdom, wrinkles, and a giant dip in his mouth. This grey haired, leather for skin, old man who’s spent his life working hard, rising with the sun, getting home when it’s dark, is looking at you, and with the crudest of analogies, is telling you that the only way to get what you want in life is to work for it, not wish for it.

It’s such simple concept, work hard, reap the benefits. If it’s at school, we walk away with an A+ on a test. If it’s at work, we walk away with more money or a promotion. If it’s in a CrossFit gym, we walk away with a heavier back squat and a faster time. The reverse would be true, don’t study, fail in school. Don’t do your job, get fired from your job. Don’t work your weaknesses in the gym. . . . don’t worry about it, I’ll just avoid them and never know the consequences of my inaction. Wait. What? This happens. Every day this happens. We see a workout with wall balls in it, “Ugg, I am so bad at wall balls. I’ll just do something else today.” Whereas not doing your job results in a loss of a job, not working a weakness may never have a negative result in the CrossFit gym. . . at least not an immediate or obvious one. Beyond not improving at that one thing we constantly avoid, because CrossFit prides itself on transference between movements, avoiding wall balls could equal to not seeing improvement in our box jumps or thrusters or even kipping pull-ups (each of those movements requires explosive opening of the hips).

So what? So I’ve avoided the thing that will hurt a little more, make me feel a little more uncomfortable, something that shows others I’m not the best. So I avoided the thing that prevents me from putting an RX by my name on the board. By not show casing my weaknesses and crushing the things I am good at, I feel better about myself. That is until something comes along, some pivotal moment, some big event, that smacks us right in the face with the very thing we’ve been avoiding. Something like, oh I don’t know, the CrossFit Games Open. Even more specifically Open workout 15.3, you know, the one that opened with muscle-ups. That workout sent a fury of haters to the inter webs shouting about the unfairness of the CrossFit Games. Could this be the same group of people, who don’t have muscle-ups but all year long told themselves they have nothing to worry about come Open time, because any workout in the Open that has muscle-ups, doesn’t have them until the end of a workout? Muscle-ups are a coveted movement in the CrossFit world, EVERY BODY is working on their muscle-ups. Are they? If by working on them we mean hopping up on the high rings, getting the biggest kipping swing, trying for a muscle-up, and failing, rinse and repeat for approx 10-15 more minutes, then yeah, I guess we are working on them. Just to be clear, that’s not working on them.

No joke, true story here. There was a local competition several people I knew were competing in. There was a 4 person team division and one of the workouts had muscle-ups in it. 2 of the team members did not have muscle-ups. Several days before the competition 1 of the non muscle-uppers was in the gym working on muscle-up transitions on the low rings followed by muscle-up attempts on the high rings. I asked the other non muscle-upper if they were also going to put in some practice? This was their response to me, “No. If I try now and don’t get one I’ll just be upset about it. I’m not even going to try until the workout and then I’m hoping the adrenaline from the whole thing will help me get one.” Ah, yes. Insert old man with giant dip saying “well you can hope in one hand and s#@t in the other. . . “. I’ll save you from the suspense, adrenaline did not get this person a muscle-up. My point is this, be it wishing it won’t show up or wishing I will be randomly successful if it does are both no ways to train. To highlight this point even more is an article written by Patrick McCarty for Breaking Muscle titled “The CrossFit Open: Stop Whining About Muscle-ups”.(click here for full article) Now 15.3 has come and gone, I’m not trying to fire up more debate as to whether or not starting an Open workout with muscle-ups is a good thing or a bad thing. In his article Patrick gives a real world example of the difference between wishing for a result and working for a result:

“When I competed in the CrossFit Games 50-54 masters division in 2014, I knew almost beyond a doubt that handstand walks would be tested. I didn’t want them to be, but they were the flavor of the year, coming up in at the regional level and knocking a lot of folks out of the running, so I was pretty sure they were going to show up. Even for the old guys. And despite my coach prescribing the requisite amount of training for handstand walks, I won’t lie – I traded the hard work for hope. Hope that there was a smidgen of light that would cause Dave Castro to bypass this particular movement for the masters. So I did my work, but I basically phoned it in. I would sort of hope that I got upside down, but I never did. It was easier just to roll back off the floor and say to myself “Whelp, that should do it for today.” Contrast that with Heather McCauley, another athlete at my box, Cincinnati Strength and Conditioning. Heather is a strong female who excels in heavy barbell movements – but one year ago, she did not have muscle ups. So, Heather began a serious effort to achieve them. Almost daily, I would see her working on some variation of the progression. Not just jumping up on the rings and flailing and hoping it happened, but working on progressions from the floor, working the turnover, working the chest to bar, working the grip. Day after day, week after week, she worked on her muscle ups. It was almost as if she was possessed.

As for me, I got to the CrossFit Games in July, and sure enough, handstand walks came up. Each athlete had to go a minimum of five feet to get a single point. I made it four. Zero points for me. Some of my competitors walked over 200 feet on their hands. I basically did a legless bear-crawl for four feet. It was, to say the least, sad. I chose to sidestep the hard work, and I paid the price. Meanwhile back at the gym, Heather was still working on her muscle ups. Finally in late 2014, she nailed one. Success! However, as is somewhat common with muscle ups when first achieved, they come and go. Heather experienced that ebb and flow where after the initial joy of getting on top of the rings, the muscle ups went away again for a while. Undeterred, she kept at it. Day after day, week after week, just hammering those muscle ups.

She put in the work – relentless, driven work – in order to master this movement and was ready for a testing piece that started with muscle ups. Heather did 15.3 and scored 161 reps – one full round and four muscle ups.

The difference between my handstand walks at the CrossFit Games and her muscle ups in 15.3? Where I traded the work for hope, Heather simply did the work.”

Everyone has weaknesses. Everyone has a goat. Avoiding them will not make them less so. Fearing them will not make them less so, fear only adds a mental component to a physical limitation. We cannot be afraid to fail and we cannot be afraid for others to see us fail. Avoiding these two situations is what leads us to be angry when something like 15.3 is announced. We say we are angry because starting an Open workout with muscle-ups defeats the spirit of the Open, blah, blah, blah. But we know we are angry because we didn’t put the work in and now it’s too late. Attack weaknesses with as much spirit and confidence as you do your favorites. Leave nothing to regret or useless anger.

I like to use the example of Bruce Lee’s one inch punch as a comparison to how you should move your feet when snatching, cleaning, or power and squat jerking. If you have not seen the video of Bruce Lee demonstrating his one inch punch, it shows him with his fist one inch away from another martial artist. Within this small space, he applies enough power as he strikes to knock the other man down into a chair placed behind him.

At its most crude level, all three lifts within weightlifting resemble a jump. Both feet come off the floor and this by definition is a jump. The jump needs to be sharp, short, and quick. Just because the jump looks different does not negate its identity. There are many different types of punches fighters use. The jab, uppercut, backhand, etc. are all different punches but they are all still identified as a punch in form. Some weightlifters even like to think of the change of direction which takes place as a sort of jumping down. What does this have to do with Bruce Lee’s one inch punch? It gives you an idea of how the feet should move within a small amount of space.

The jump which takes place during a snatch, clean, or jerk does not have to involve your feet coming a foot off the platform. In fact, to think of it this way will leave you “toe tied”. After you have completed your pull during the “Finish”, move your feet and pull yourself under the bar within a short amount of space using great power. Picture your feet moving with the same power as Bruce Lee’s one inch punch.

Don’t equate triple extension- extension of the ankles, knees, and hips, with “jumping” from the floor and slamming your feet down. This post is a great reminder that, at no time, are you actually jumping from the floor on the clean, snatch, or jerk. If your feet momentarily leave the ground, it is only because you hips opened so explosively, your shrug was so powerful, and you are moving your feet into your squat stance. Here is a slow motion video of a snatch, focus on the feet (FYI: that’s a 321 pound snatch):

*NOTE for today’s workout: PLEASE sign up for class. If you are not signed up you may not get a rower. You may be substituted with the air assault bike or running.

People helping people…it’s powerful stuff!

When we are trying to learn something new, whether it’s a new language, how to play the guitar or even trying to perfect a new movement in CrossFit, it helps to understand how our brain learns. We all learn differently of course, but some traits are pretty common. An interesting read can be found HERE with some tips and exercises to try. Here’s a brief synopsis.

We take information better when it’s visual. Our brains use 50 percent of it’s resource on vision. 50 %! That means all other functions have only 50% of what’s left for all tasks. One interesting finding from several studies is that we treat text as images. This means that reading is inefficient in terms of processing information as compared to absorbing information by looking at a picture.

Sleep affects learning and memory. This is kind of one of those duh statements, but here’s a little more color. In a study where participants learned a new motor skill and were tested at how well they remembered what they learned, participants that had a night of sleep tested almost 17 % higher than people who were simply tested in 4 hour intervals after the new motor skill was learned.

Learn best by teaching others. As a coach, I know this works well. When I teach movement or use cue to help correct faults, seeing it put into play by our members helps me become a better mover. Seeing how my words or cues for corrections are interpreted allows me a chance to learn better ways to learn how to correct movement.

The article has a few more tips on how to best learn including action plans that you try to see if the recommended tips are ways to help you improve learning. Click HERE for the full article and links to studies referenced in the article.

Most of us, at least I hope anyways, take showers in the morning. It’s part of our daily ritual, helps us wake up, and it’s just hygienic really. How many of you take a cold shower in the morning? I’m not talking you turn the cold water on a little to cool the hot water, I’m talking about turning the dial to the C or if you have a two dial system, not even touching the H one.

I’ve been reading and hearing more and more about the benefit of a cold shower in the morning, I’m talking mountain spring water from melted snow cold too. Ice baths are common during CrossFit competitions and many professionals athletes in major sports also utilize ice baths to help relieve sore muscles and reduce inflammation. But what about a freezing cold shower first thing in the morning? An article on the FastCompany website dug a little deeper in the benefits. Here are a few of the takeaways from the article and the link can be found at the end of the blog.

In the simplest terms, cold water can flood the mood regulating areas of our brain with happy neurotransmitters. Separate studies have show that winter swimmers, people that swim in cold water, have a decrease in tension and fatigue as well as improved mood and memory.

Here’s a way to give it a shot yourself and see if you experience the benefits. Instead of jumping into a cold shower, start with a hot one and slowly lower the temperate until the water is cold to the touch and the skin. Once it’s at the cold to the touch temperature, stand under if for 2 – 3 minutes. This was the template the participants that reported the above results followed.

I am very adverse to temperature whether hot or cold. It takes me forever to get in a hot tub and cold tubs or ice baths are just as bad. I’ve been trying the above formula of starting warm and lowering the temperature gradually and I’ve been able to make it up to 1 minute. I’m hoping to be at the recommended 2 – 3 minutes in the next week or so.

Has anyone else tried cold showers or use them regularly? Click HEREfor the full FastCompany article.

SIDE DISH ALERT! - Anna Mattson

When planning my meals for the week, I usually NEVER have an issue deciding my meat selection for the week, in fact, it is exciting (sad, I know). Where I struggle is coming up with new and exciting side dishes that don’t take a ton of prep. The following recipe is easy, takes little prep, and is delicious! You can find the original recipe here.
NOTE:The chef suggests finding a medium-sized head of cauliflower. A larger head will have issues cooking all the way through and will scorch on the outside.

WHOLE ROASTED CAULIFLOWER

INGREDIENTS

1 medium-sized head cauliflower

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 clove garlic, finely minced

kosher salt

2 Tbsp finely-grated Parmesan

1 tsp red pepper flakes

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9″ pie dish with cooking spray. Trim the leaves and stems from the underside of the cauliflower and cut the bottom stem even with the florets so that the cauliflower sits flat.

Stir together the olive oil and garlic. Begin by brushing the bottom side of the cauliflower with the garlic oil. Season the underside and up inside the cauliflower with salt. Turn the head over and brush the top liberally with the garlic oil. Season the head with salt and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and red pepper flakes.

Place the cauliflower into the pie dish and bake for 50–60 minutes or until the center of the cauliflower is tender when pierced with a knife and the exterior is golden brown.

Slice into wedges and serve nice and hot. Enjoy!

252 grams of cauliflower = 1 block of CHO

VERVE UPDATES:

If you plan on doing/re-doing the Open workout tomorrow, you can start warming-up at 1:30pm to warm-up. The first heat for the workout will begin at 2pm!! You can sign-up for heats on the white board.